SMH Announces Plans to Open New Hospital in North Port

Sarasota Memorial recently announced plans to open a hospital in North Port.

Sarasota Memorial Hospital – North Port, which will be built on a 32-acre undeveloped site in the 4900 block of North Sumter Boulevard near I-75, will be the health system’s third hospital and the first for North Port.

Sarasota Memorial purchased the parcel in 2007 with a pledge from the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board to invest in the medical infrastructure needed to support a hospital in North Port.

“Building a hospital in North Port has been part of our strategic plan and a longstanding goal of city and hospital leaders for many years,” said Sarasota Memorial CEO David Verinder. “As we had hoped, our new hospital in Venice, which opened in November of 2021, is bringing our extensive physician base further south, which provides the support and specialty services we need to move forward with a full-service hospital in North Port.”

Hospital officials recently met with North Port leaders to discuss preliminary plans and the timeline for city permits SMH will seek before construction begins. Officials estimate it will take about three years to plan and begin building SMH-North Port.

“If the pre-construction and permitting work proceeds as planned, we hope to see the foundation taking shape in 2025, the same year we celebrate our health system’s 100th anniversary,” David said.

With more than 80,000 residents, North Port is now the largest city both in land mass and population in Sarasota County, and one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation. In addition, the new hospital will help meet south county’s increased demand for care prompted by the impending closure of the 312-bed ShorePoint Venice Hospital.

The size, cost and construction schedule for the hospital are still being finalized. SMH is working on a campus design that will be flexible and expandable. Initially, SMH-North Port will open with about 100 beds, but have the capacity to more than double in size to meet the community’s evolving needs.

The hospital will offer a comprehensive range of acute medical, surgical and specialty care, outpatient programs and diagnostic services, as well as space for educational and support programs.

The campus will have medical office buildings with primary and specialty physicians, including First Physicians Group practices. In a related move, SMH also is updating plans for a health care campus on property it owns in nearby Wellen Park and its existing North Port ER and Health Care Center on Toledo Blade Boulevard.

For future updates on the new hospital and health care facilities in North Port, visit: smh.com/NorthPortUpdates